In the Kitchen

To store this week’s box… it all goes in the fridge. Remove the greens from the radishes and the Spinruts. I don’t eat radish greens, so I would discard those, but I would definitely save the turnip greens. Everything should go in plastic bags in the crisper drawer.

Sometimes I think that my life as a vegetable grower has been defined by seeing something, somewhere, and thinking, “I. Have. To. Grow. That.” I felt that way the first time a saw a photo of fresh, peeled onions, the first time I dug a patch of heirloom potatoes, and the first time I saw the beautiful, white-rooted, Japanese spring turnips during a slide show at a farming conference in a rural church in upstate New York. I went home to the farm in Maine exclaiming, “We have to grow these!” we call them Spinruts, which is turnips spelled backwards, at the suggestion of a farmers market customer who insisted that if we continued to call the spring turnips, lots of people who deserved to eat something this good would miss out on them entirely. The greens make a great sauté for a tasty side.

Steamed Spinruts

Several spinruts, quartered
butter
salt

Steam the quartered turnips until just barely fork tender – about five minutes. Don’t overcook them, and remember that they will keep cooking even after you pull them from the pot. Serve with just a little bit of butter and a dash of salt.

We are still harvesting asparagus, and may be the last farm left doing so in this area, because the demand from our wholesale accounts has gone through the roof this week. The hard frost in early May was hard on the crop as a whole, and asparagus has been scarce as far south as Iowa City. However, the CSA eats first, so we are sending plenty that way this week.

The Red Oak Lettuce hales from the greenhouse this week, as we wait for the outdoor crops to work their way back from the cold spring. Greenhouse lettuce has a tendency to be extra-tender, and the red oak we grow comes close to butterheads in its tenderness. This lettuce will do best with lighter dressings like vinaigrette. I am quite pleased with the sweet flavor.

Red Russian Kale is actually a different species from the standard green curly stuff, sharing a common heritage with turnips rather than broccoli. The greens are still quite hearty, and respond well to generous cooking. I like it best with strong flavors of soy sauce or red pepper flakes. Strip out the tough midribs by grasping the base of the rub, and using your other hand to run your thumb and forefingers down the rib, stripping off the relatively-tender leaf.

Spicy Red Russian Kale

1 bunch Red Russian Kale
2 Tbsp olive oil
2 cloves garlic, minced (or scallions or shallots)
1/2 tsp dried pepper flakes

Stem the kale and slice into ribbons. In a large skillet over medium-high heat, heat the oil until just before smoking. Add kale and garlic, and cook for one minute before lowering heat; continue to cook the kale, stirring occasionally, until the greens are tender. Toss with the dried pepper flakes and serve.

I spent a long, long time entranced by the idea of Purple Radishes, but the varieties I have tried to grow in the past were irregular, and prone to go to seed. This new hybrid holds its flavor and eating quality for a long time. Some of this week’s radishes are quite large by my standards, but still tasty and possessing a nice texture.

As a former Latin-student (the first time I ever came to the Midwest was for the national convention of the Junior Classical League in Bloomington, Indiana. I’d never seen fireflies before, and the thunderstorm was over-the-top. And, my team from Seattle won the chariot race with a unit designed to be transported as checked baggage.) I’m a sucker for a good myth, especially when it has to do with vegetables, so here’s one for the Spearmint in this week’s boxes. The ancient Greeks told the story of how Hades, god of the Underworld, fell in love with the water nymph Minthe, for not even the charms of his wife, Persephone—whom we have to thank for the changing of the seasons—could keep him fully occupied. In what seems to be an all-too-familiar theme in the Greek pantheon, Hades succumbed to temptation but failed to keep it hidden from his wife, who, upon learning of the illicit activities, decided to take revenge on her husband’s mistress, and began stomping, kicking, and trampling all over the poor water nymph. Hades, in a rather sorry attempt to stick up for his lover, gave Minthe a wonderful sweet fragrance that was released each time Persephone gave her the boot. So, it is thanks to the rather ungallant actions of the god of the Underworld, we have the delightful smell and flavor of a whole variety of mints, all of which grow quite nicely even if you walk on them a lot.

Mojitoes

A bunch of mint leaves (10 – 20)
1/2 lime, sliced thinly
1 Tbsp sugar
4 oz light rum
Crushed ice, or small ice cubes

Mix mint leaves, lime slices and sugar, mashing the mixture repeatedly until the lime juice and sugar take on a minty flavor. Add the rum and mix. Fill tall glasses with ice, and pour the mixture over the ice. Tastes best after sitting in the refrigerator for about ten minutes. Serves two.